ghoulslayer
by ghouls are pretty cool
Summary: Madness is an interesting concept. At what point does one lose all sense of reason, and become truly insane? Madness is not born but bred, created in an everlasting cycle. It is a direct result of the way the ones around us act, And for Kaneki, that could not be more true.
1. Chapter 1

-Ghoulslayer-

by the time the village was burning, the sky had darkened to black. The sounds of the woodland animals nearby had stilled, as if the creatures knew something the humans did not. Never the less, Yamori strode onward towards the village gates, ignoring the charred bodies of unfortunate souls that had tried to escape. They never made it far. In Yamori's line of profession, death was a given, and you either never got used to it or became insane as a conequence.

It could be safely said that Yamori was of the latter, his morals had faded into dust, and his mind had twisted into something terrible. He was greeted by one of his co-consiprators, Hijiko, a common thug from Hargeon.

"So Hijiko, you finished cleaining up? I do hope you you left a few alive for my *time off*" snarled Yamori, cracking his thumb against his middle finger.

"N-no mr Yamori, we found one girl for you. Here."

Hijiko rummaged around behind him before he pulled out a 12 year old girl with scarlet hair. She kicked and struggled with her captor, but was eventually knocked out with a chop to the neck.

Yamori examined the girl closely. She seemed like she had some spunk, but he knew far too well that girls broke quickly. they never lasted more than a few days before they died. He sighed in frustration and turned back to Hijiko.

"I think I'll search for one myself. You should dump her in the tower of heaven, they always do pay well for *exotic* specimens, and this one practically reeks of magic"

Hijiko shivered at the mere mention of the tower of heaven. While he wasn't privy to a lot of details, he still knew the horrors that went on inside the tower. But money was money, no matter the device used to create it.

Yamori was striding around the area, making note of the burning wreckage that used to be homes, and the odd scream and whimper here and there. To yamori, the village looked much better like this. The villagers would now realise the harsh reality of the world they live in, and any survivors would know that the spiel of lies told by the guilds were all a load of crap. Their blind faith in the evils of killing drew some to fanaticism, to a point where no matter the reason nor circumstance, killing was never justified. Yamori had been a victim of this, and he remembered a time 15 years past, where he thought that the guilds and magic council were infallible. Oh how wrong he was. All he did was acccidently use too much of his power, and in his desperation to try and save his teammate he had accidently killed the assailant. He was looked upon with disgust by his fellow guild members, even the man he saved looked upon him in scorn. He couldn't understand their sentiments, so he left.

Yamori was broken from his musings after a faint crash permeated the nearby air. He sniffed the air, his noses sensitivity increased hundredfold by his BESERKER magic.

There, the pungent and sweet scent of overwhelming fear. He strode over to the source and lifted up some timber pieces to find a small family huddled underneath. A father, a mother and two children. Both the parents seemed to be the unhealthy sort, large and piglike fat hung off their bodies in testiment to their obesity and one of the children looked no better. However, it was the other child that caught his eye. Instead of fear, sadness or even a sense of naive bravery, his eyes looked towards him with childlike wonder, so barely restrained by those coal-black eyes. The boy in question looked no more than 10 or 11, with medium length black hair and large eyes. He seemed to be wearing rags, and his trousers were entirely too big for him, but something about the boy screamed different. He liked this one.

The pigs babbled inconherently, telling them to "take the demon and spare them". Yamori's lips twitched into a curios frown, wondering what they meant. How could a child this innocent be a demon?

after realising that talk was getting them no-where, the pigs jumped up and ran as fast as they could away from Yamori. The keyword here is tried, because after about 10-20 metres they started panting in exhaustion.

A grim and slightly psychotic smile appeared on Yamori's face as he cocked his fist back and allowed the purple aura of his magic engulf it. He punched forward, and a large invisible force ripped towards the family, tearing them to shreds, leaving a crater in their stead.

Yamori looked to the boy, to find him grinning happily towards him, seemingly unaffected by the slaughter of his family.

"You're so cool mr! I wish I could do things like that" The grin was infectious, and soon even Yamori was unable to keep a slight smirk off of his face.

"Don't you care that I just kiled your family and slaughtered the entire village? you probably have no family left." asked yamori in an amused tone

The boys smile persisted

"They weren't my family. They said that they found me outside the village gates and took me in, but they always called me the "devils child" so I assumed that the devil was my dad. Even when they hit me and cut me up, I still smiled because I would always think about my dad and how one-day he was coming to rescue me! Eventually the pain went away, and they just left me in a house and hoped I would starve, but it never worked! And then, one day when I was getting punched by the villagers, I overheard them talking about a "demon called Yamori" that was coming to the village. I knew my dad was coming back for me, so I went back to my "other" family and waited like a good boy until you came. Say, are you my daddy mr?"

Yamori tried to detect a single falsity from the childs mouth, but found nothing but sincere innocence. Finally, after a few minutes of deliberation, Yamori opened his mouth.

"What do you think about killing kid? do you think its wrong to kill people who hurt you?"

If it was possible, the boy's smile widened even further.

"I never killed a human, but when I went to school I used to kill the little animals for fun. It made me happy when they started screaming and screeching, but the other boys said I was a freak for doing it. I didn't listen to them though, 'cos I knew you wouldn't mind!"

Yamori attempted a smile, but after years of unuse the facial muscles that are needed for a smile didn't react properly, and instead created a lopsided and maniacal grin.

"So kid, you got a name?"

The boy beamed at Yamori, his eyes so bright and filled with happiness that seemed so strange in the burning wreckage of the village.

"It's Kaneki mr! Kaneki Ken!"

"Well then Kaneki, how would you like to come with me?"

The offer was simple, but Kaneki didn't care. All he ever wanted was to be free of the bad men in the village and one day leave with his father. It was his dream come true.

"Of course mr Yamori, I'll come with you!"

Yamori grunted and turned to leave, not bothering to check if the boy was following him. Well, boy wouldn't be an accurate way to describe the "thing" that was behind him. Kaneki smelled unnatural, almost human but not quite. To anyone else he would smell 100% normal, but Yamori's nose was not fooled. The smell of man almost seemed stale, like worn-leather, and the smell seemed to be holding something back, something inhuman.

But Yamori didn't care, he was described as a monster by most others, so whatever creature the boy was did not bother him.

As Yamori left, he failed to realise that he never told Kaneki his name.


	2. Chapter 2

**SO, before I start I have to say thank you for everyone who has supported my story so far. I have been reading fanfiction for over a year now, and I had the idea for this piece not long after I started. However, I've only now decided to finally put pen to paper and start. As this is my first fanfiction I'm sure there will be some things wrong, so I would greatly appreciate anyone leaving a review, good or bad. I'm not sure how fast Uploads will be, but it mainly depends on the reception I** **receive** **for this chapter.** **Thank you once again, and enjoy!**

-Ghoulslayer-

Kaneki ken was having fun. He'd never been out of the village before, and the sight of trees and birds made his heart ache in happiness. However, this was not the only reason for Kaneki's happiness. Kaneki was always a clever child, and quickly understood that there was something _different_ about him compared to all the other people in his village. The constant names and abuse made sure of that fact, and he knew from some books he managed to steal from the library that a human could not survive without food for a week. Kaneki had stayed in an abandoned shed, tied up to the wall for almost 3 months at one time, yet he only ate once, and that was just the meat that the masked man gave him.

The masked man was a funny one. He never spoke, but he always made Kaneki feel happy and safe, warm and comforted. It was a strange feeling to a boy who was so used to being alone. The masked man would never stay long, but he would always bring the delicious meat of some strange animal with him. It was only after Kaneki's sense of smell started to develop that he noticed the meat smelled exactly the same as all the people in the town. Each scent was unique, but they all had the same underlying sweetness that the meat had.

Most would be horrified at the revelation that their only food source was human flesh, but to Kaneki it was actually a delight. Humans ate meat like beef and pork because the animals that they came from were not as powerful as humans. So, to a child's mind, it only seemed logical that whatever Kaneki was, he was better and stronger than humans. He was a predator, and Kaneki revelled in it. To be above those who had made his life hell was exhilarating, and oddly relaxing at the same time. Whatever happened, humans would always be prey.

"We're here"

Kaneki was broken from his musings by Yamori's voice, and looked up only to stare in wonder at the structure before him. A spiralling mess of black and red, and endless sea of tortured screams and gut-wrenching sounds, it felt just right to Kaneki. The tower was a mismatched piece of work, seemingly created by a hundred different architects, each with a different style. Gothic black brick and gargoyles gave way to an almost modern section with straight white walls and large windows, before succumbing to a part near the top that seemed to be almost alive, red and pulsing. Kaneki couldn't wait

Yamori sighed as he watched the boy run around the tower in amazement. It just further enforced the fact that the boy was **_not_** normal in any way, shape or form. Yamori planned to get the boy to do some of the slave work with the other kids for a few years before teaching him magic so that he could build up some muscles and strength. As it stood, the boy was scraggly and malnourished, so he decided to ask the boy about food.

"Hey kid!" shouted Yamori, catching the attention of the black haired boy, "you want anything to eat?"

Now, normally Yamori was not this compassionate, but something about the boy drew Yamori to him, and he was pained to say that after the few weeks he had spent with the boy he had come to develop a sort of grudging respect for him.

He was half-certain that the boy would complain on the way here, but he didn't say a word in dissent. Even after the boy had not eaten for what seemed to be a few weeks, he never pestered Yamori and wasn't seen eating either. This was just further proof to Yamori that the boy was some type of monster, but as the kid didn't bother him he kept his mouth sealed.

The boy in question looked up at Yamori and, with wide, unblinking eyes, told Yamori something that sent shivers down his spine.

"I can only eat human meat Mr Yamori! So don't worry about making me anything, if you have any bodies that you need to dispose of just give them to me."

Yamori nodded, not daring himself to speak after hearing the boys confession. What kind of kid casually admitted that he was a cannibal?

"Thanks Mr Yamori! I knew you'd understand."

The boy laughed and skipped away, leaving Yamori to his thoughts and mad ramblings.

"looks like I was right to keep this one".

\- 1 year later -

Erza was cold and tired. Her arms ached, her feet were sore, and her voice was hoarse from screaming and crying. She was 13 now, the same age as most of the other children from her town, and had once again failed to escape the tower of heaven.(A.N. I know erza was like 5 or 6 in canon, but I just don't see a kid that young being able to actually handle any manual labour, so I upped the ages of most of the characters)

After first arriving here, she had wailed and cried for her family for days. However, after one of the guards decided to teach her proper manners, she had grudgingly come to accept her fate. That didn't mean that Erza had given up hope of escape, far from it, but she knew that crying would get her nowhere.

Erza had made a few friends with the kids that she shared the cell with, including Milliana, Macbeth(emo guy that slept on a rug during oracion seis arc), and Jellal. Each of them had manifested their magic on their 13th birthday, as is usually the case for those gifted with magic, but they had no real training with their respective powers. Erza could only summon a small knife, Macbeth could barely cut a stolen rag with his distorted air, and so far all that Milliana had received were slightly-better-than-average reflexes and harder nails. Jellal had been the worst of the group, barely able to manifest a spark of power.

However, master rob had promised them that he would teach them how to utilise their powers, and Erza knew that with his help they would be able to break out once and for all, and she would finally be able to see her parents.

"Erza, you okay?"

Erza looked around to see Jellal looking at her with concern in his eyes, his vibrant blue hair and distinct tattoo drawing her attention.

"Yeah, you don't have to worry. It was nothing out of the ordinary."

Erza forced a smile on her face, causing Jellal to look away with a frown.

She had to look strong for the younger ones, and Jellal knew that. If she put up a brave front, the smaller kids would retain their bravery, as to them Erza was an idol. It was all the more reason for Erza to escape.

After a few months of training with master Rob, Erza found her and her friends had drastically improved their magical power. Erza could now summon quite a few swords at a time, and had learnt to use them to the best of her ability. Macbeth was now able to slash through blood and bone, and he had even started creating minor illusions. Milliana was now able to summon tubes of magical energy that could be shot out of her hands, but they left her drained quite quickly. Jellal, suprisingly, had progressed the most out of all of them. He could manifest fire out of his hands with relative ease, and the more he trained the bluer the fire would become, which she supposed showed the intensity of the flames.

"Erza nya, what are you thinking about?"

Erza looked over to find Milliana and Macbeth looking at her with unplacable expressions

"I'm just thinking about how much we've progressed with our magic. A few more months and we'll be able to break out! most of the guards don't know how to use magic at all, and we outnumber them 10 to 1."

Macbeth looked at her with a troubled expression.

"What about Yamori. We've rarely seen him, but apparently if you really anger the guards you get taken to him as a present, and no-one has come back since. I've seen him do magic before though, the purple energy that wisps around him when he walks past the cells can't be a trick of the light."

Milliana butted in, looking entirely too pleased with herself.

"Well, I've heard a rumour that he's dead."

"Dead!" exclaimed Erza, her face one of shock rather than horror. With Yamori out of the way the breakout could happen much sooner, but she knew that the rumour was most likely made up.

"Yeah nya, and he was killed by someone our age too! I saw it happen!"

If possible, both Erza's and Macbeth's eyes widened even more.

"I had to deliver something to that weird flesh room upstairs, And as I was walking up there this white-haired boy ran past me with blood all over his clothes. I was about to ask him if he was alright before I heard a strange dripping sound from Yamori's room. I opened the door a bit, and all I could see was blood and his mangled body. It was really gross!"

The kids had been desensitised to blood and gore over their stay in the tower of heaven, so they were not shocked by the rather unemotional description of the dead body.

"So," started Macbeth, looking thoughtful, "You think that white haired kid did it?"

"Without a doubt, nya."

Erza was about to speak when the door of their cell was pushed open and Jellal and another boy were pushed inside. Jellal looked no worse for wear than usual, but the other boy that was with him caught her eye. His eyes were like pieces of jet on a blank canvas, with messy black hair that looked like silk. His face had a soft but regal look to it, and even in the dirt and grime of the prison, she could still discern the beauty in his features. His clothes were cut and torn, but he didn't seem to have a single blemish on his skin.

 _A fallen angel_

She blushed and looked away quickly, pushing the feeling in her heart down, before looking back at him. He was smiling, a smile that seemed so full of life and happiness that she couldn't resist the tugging of her lips, and neither could her companions.

"Hi! my names Kaneki Ken! pleased to meet you!"

The sheer exuberance of the boy brought giggles forward from both Erza and Milliana.

They all introduced themselves, save Jellal who was looking at the boy with a look of awe.

After a few moments of silence, Erza decided to take the initiative.

"So Kaneki, how old are you."

Kaneki beamed at the question, and replied quickly

"13, but i'm nearly 14 now! the same age as you guys! I hope I get along with you all, I haven't met anyone my age since I arrived here."

Erza frowned inwardly. There was no shortage of children in the tower of heaven, and the fact that he had never interacted with any of them seemed a little off.

Seemingly sensing the question, Kaneki spoke.

"I got put into an isolation cell since I accidentally used some magic on one of the guards. It was around when I arrived, and I've been there until now."

Macbeth strode forward and asked the question all the others had been wanting to ask.

"So, If you can use magic, can you give us a demonstration? all of us here can do magic aswell, and we can teach you if you want."

As if to prove his point, Macbeth pointed to one of the stone walls on our cell and carved Kaneki's name in it with his distortion blades.

"WOW! That was so cool! I wish I could do magic like that! But every time I try, I accidentally blow something up!"

Kaneki's jovial admission lead to bouts of laughter and snickering from the gathered kids, and in their mirth they failed to notice the slight maniacal gleam in the boys eyes as he laughed, or the way his black hair seemed to turn almost _white_ under the pale moon.

Master Rob did though.


	3. Chapter 3

Kaneki's eye was throbbing. He hadn't eaten in a while, and he couldn't afford to blow his cover around the children surrounding him. That old man was already suspicious as it is, and feasting on human flesh in the middle of the cell certainly wouldn't help matters.

Kaneki surveyed his surroundings, taking note of the flaky brick wall and the huddle of children in the corner. He had to stop himself grimacing in disgust at the sight. They showed him friendship, sure, but Kaneki was no fool. If they heard about what he was, what he had done, they would hate him. Scream at him. Kick him. Punch him. Stab him. Centipedes, crawling through his ears. Hot, but not burning. stabsatbbatabatbatabsta-

Kaneki noticed his hair was turning white again, and forcibly pushed those emotions down. He looked around in panic, praying that nobody was paying attention. His heart sank as he noticed that infuriating old bag-of-bones staring at him, fear obvious in his sunken orbs. Kaneki knew that look. He was going to talk.

Just as Master Rob opened his mouth, the doors of the cell opened to reveal guards. They were dressed in black and blue robes, with cruel smirks etched onto their faces. Kaneki, however, saw beneath those looks and instead of heartless monsters, found two very scared and very terrified men on the inside.

Kaneki licked his lips.

"Alright spill it! Which one of you brats killed Yamori?"

The first of the two guards stepped forward, his shock baton standing at attention. The others all shivered at the sight, undoubtedly remembering what it could do.

Kaneki had something else on his mind. Underneath the facade of an innocent, normal teen layed a madman, a killer, a predator. His hungry, black eyes shone with barely restrained malice, his friendly smile hiding a mouth soaked in the blood of others. The guards stepped back unconsciously, something about the boy making their most primal instincts react.

"Well? We're waiting."

The guards had recovered from their shock, and were now glaring upon the inhabitants of the room with barely restrained anger.

Jellal was about to step up, no doubt trying to impress the red haired girl, but Kaneki beat him to it.

"I did it Sir!"

Without a further word, both the guards grabbed Kaneki by the hands and roughly dragged him out the cell, clapping cuffs on his wrists as they did. He heard the cries of protest from the others in his cell, obviously thinking that he was giving himself up to save them. They couldn't be further from the truth.

The red haired one, Erza, tried to run after him.

"Wait, don't take him! It was me, please, He's innocent. I can even-"

Her brief display of heroics was interrupted by a slap to the face from one of the guards, flinging her to the ground.

"Yeah right, like a girly like you could _ever_ take out Yamori. Now fuck off before I decide you need punishment as well!"

Erza's eyes widened, and she was about to protest before Master Rob held her back with a gentle hand on her shoulder and a shake of the head. Erza's tears were flowing freely now, as were some of the others in the room. They all really believed that he cared for them. Human children were all so easily to fool.

"But rob-jii-chan..."

Behind master Rob's concerned countenance, Kaneki could tell Rob was relieved, _the freak was gone_ , was probably what he thought. Well too bad for him, because Kaneki decided that he wanted to taste another magic user like Yamori. He had barely got a taste before he had to flee, but that simple drop of blood that he tasted was simply **divine**.

Kaneki sent a faux grin to the others, as he was dragged out of his cell. If he had calculated right, they would bring him to that orange haired boy that had been driving his senses crazy since he had arrived. He was the only human in this entire tower that wasn't prey, and that intrigued Kaneki. He wanted to see this boy for himself, find out what was so special about him. And maybe, just maybe, they could be friends.

Kaneki knew it was a fool's hope, but he wanted something to break him out of the loneliness that encapsulated him. _No one understood_.

Even Yamori couldn't fill the void. He was scared, Kaneki knew that, and hid behind his hard looks. It was then that Kaneki knew that had to die, because he was a liability. Scared people could do rash things, Kaneki knew from his treatment back in the village, and he had no desire to go through that again. Kaneki was cursed to be alone forever, or at least that was what he thought.

Kaneki was broken from his thoughts by a harsh kick from one of the guards. He didn't cry out, years of torture made sure of that, pain barely registering to him. His skin was thicker than a humans, he knew, and lately any attempts to stab him with something sharp had resulted in the offending object being smashed to pieces.

Kaneki looked forward, and saw his goal. Large black steel rods stood straight like soldiers, reaching up for at least 3m. The room inside wasn't lit, and the only noise he could hear was the faint drip of water and the rattle of chains. He looked back at his captors and saw them sneering back at him.

They pushed him in and threw away the key.

"Let's see how long he survives while he's in there with that **Thing.** "

"500 jewels that he goes completely bonkers like the last one."

"500 for him slitting his throat by the time we get back."

Listening to their cruel laughs echoing around his new cell as they walked away made Kaneki shiver in anticipation. He couldn't _wait_ to kill those ones.

Kaneki looked around the cell, and once again heard the rattle of chains from before. He crept closer to the source, and his eyes widened as he stared at the figure in front of him.

There, wrapped in steel, was a boy no older than Kaneki. He wore rags just like the other prisoners, and his body was skinny and malnourished, but his face and hair drew Kaneki in. Hair as orange as the setting sun, the fiery dawn. It swayed and twisted, a morning flame.

He turned to Kaneki, and black eyes met purple. The boy's eyes were unnatural, with concentric rings and an aura of power radiating from them. Kaneki looked into those orbs, and saw not a god, but an equal. He understood.

"I was wondering when you would come to see me."

The deep, but smooth voice of the stranger echoed through the room, encapsulating Kaneki with its might. Kaneki looked once again at the boy, and saw a face completely devoid of all emotion.

Kaneki forgot his childish smile and happy laughter, his naive countenance and playful attitude. He dropped his human mask, and let the true Kaneki come out to play.

His eyes shone with intelligence, the once friendly smile twisted into a sadistic smirk, and his once angelic features turned to something more sinful, evil, _devilish_.

"I guess the opportunity just presented itself."

The boy's face contorted into a smile after a few attempts, as if he had trouble showing any emotion apart from apathy.

"I must say, I have been rather interested by you, Kaneki Ken."

Now there was a surprise. The boy knew his name, and had established superiority over Kaneki. Kaneki absolutely adored this game. The battle of the minds, the clash of rational thought. It almost compared to his feeding time.

"Since you know my name, I hope you are willing to provide yours."

The apathetic stare returned, and his eyes bored into Kaneki's own and made him shiver, the otherworldly glow further cementing Kaneki's observation of his worth.

"Yahiko."

The boy now known as Yahiko waited patiently for Kaneki's reply, still managing to look regal even with the chains binding him.

"So then, Yahiko. Care to explain what you know about me?"

"My eyes see all. After my 13th birthday my magic manifested and created my eyes, and from then on I knew I was different. This change created in me a longing to prove myself, to be distinguished from the pitiable maggots that surrounded me. I trained all the time, and found that the people that were once my friends became wary of me, almost afraid. They couldn't understand why I wanted power. After a month I had enough raw magic to break everyone out of this prison, but I held back. I knew there was someone else in the tower that shared my sentiments, someone who valued power above all else. I managed to kill a few guards and got locked in this prison that siphons off my magic, waiting for the day that my equal would arrive. And now you are here, Kaneki Ken, and I am disappointed."

Kaneki looked at him for a few seconds, dumbstruck, before rage clouded his mind. His left eye pulsed with power and bled ruby-red, while the once blank canvas that was his sclera was painted black as night. his dark hair turned to ash, replaced with the colour of bone. 4 Long red tentacled burst from Kaneki's back, a spider's legs, and waving threateningly at Yahiko.

Yahiko laughed

"There, that is it! That was what I sensed! The power, the rage, the fear you place in the hearts of others! You are certainly not human, Kaneki Ken, but neither am I. We are both something more, don't you see? I know all about your "feeding habits", Kaneki Ken, and the way you deceive all those around you. Like the fox laying in wait, whispering sweet nothings into the blackbirds ear. They are all livestock to you, aren't they? Weak and pitiful, they will never understand. But we are different, You and I. Join me, and we will take this world together."

Kaneki smiled, his first ever true smile, his ashen hair covering his eyes.

He had found his first friend, and the feeling he had made him feel amazing. They were the same, they were equal, they were one. His mind was made up since he had seen those eyes.

"I will join you, Yahiko, my equal. Together we will be invincible, and we can search the world for others. More like you, more like me."

For the first time, Both Yahiko and Kaneki felt like they had something to look forward to.

"I will be a god," started Yahiko, his emotionless face tinged with a slight amount of happiness and anticipation

"And I will be your angel."

In that dark and dreary cell, inside a tower that reached to heaven, a legend was created, and the earth would be torn asunder in their quest.


	4. Chapter 4

_**So, before you read I just want to take up a few seconds of your time to tell you to review my work. Even if you don't like it, It would be greatly appreciated if you could just drop a comment telling me what I should do to improve. Constructive criticism is greatly appreciated. I don't really know what you guys think about my story, so reviewing would really help me understand where I want to go with my story. Without further ado, lets get on with the story...**_

They were ready.

After training themselves into the ground for at least a few months, Erza and her friends were finally confident enough to break out of this wretched tower.

They had grown lazy during Kaneki's stay, something about his nature relaxing and calming them, making them grow complacent, but after he left they realised what fools they were being. Because of their weakness, their incompetence, Kaneki had been taken. A boy as pure as him didn't belong in this accursed place, and he had given himself up to allow them the chance to escape. Erza knew he would never hurt a fly, the way he acted around them told her that he undoubtedly lived a peaceful life before being taken to the tower. He probably had friends and family out there that might now never see him, and it was her fault that that might never happen.

Erza shook her head from those thoughts. Kaneki was alive, and she was going to rescue him. Every time Master Rob so much as suggested that he was "in a better place", Erza threw a tantrum and, in childish logic, explained to Master Rob that there was no _way_ he could be dead. But Erza could not deny she was scared, because Master Rob had never been wrong before. She was frightened that due to her own inability, Kaneki had been killed.

It didn't matter now, because it was time to go and save him. She and her friends had agreed to search high and low for the black haired boy, even if it compromised their escape. Kaneki had helped all of them, albeit unconsciously, and she wasn't about to give up on him now.

Erza looked to Jellal, and saw him in a brooding state. Erza sighed and shook her head.

Jellal had been deep in thought since a few days after Kaneki's untimely departure, and whenever he was confronted about it he replied that he was fine and that there was nothing to worry about.

After all the time they had spent together, did Jellal really think that she couldn't see the confusion in his eyes?

Jellal knew something, and Erza was determined to find out what it was.

"Jellal! Stop moping around and come over here!"

Jellal looked up in surprise, a frown marring his features. Nevertheless, he strode forwards and sat down next to Erza.

"I'm not brooding, Erza-chan, just thinking about what life will be like after we break out.

Erza scoffed, and stamped her feet in child-like indignation.

"Oh yeah? You've been like this ever since those _Guards_ ", she spat the word like it was venom, "took Kaneki away! I've never seen you like this before, so just tell me what happened!"

Jellal's face grew resigned, and he seemed to age a few years in front of Erza.

"Do you remember when Kaneki first came here?"

Erza thought back, and nodded.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Do you remember that me and Kaneki came in together?"

Erza looked confused, before her face slowly morphed into one of understanding.

"Oh yeah, you two did come in together! What actually happened out there?"

Erza thought it strange that this seemingly important fact had slipped her mind, and the minds of all her other friends.

"That's what I've been trying to figure out. For some reason, I just can't remember any of the events that happened while I was out the cell. There's like a giant blank spot in my memory. I remember leaving the cell to go and work, and I remember being shoved back inside with Kaneki, but apart from that I don't recall a thing."

Erza could see the concerned expression on Jellal's face when he said this, and Erza resolved to help calm him down.

"Maybe It's just some sort of magic? Usually the first thing to ask someone who has just turned up in your cell is why they are here, but I remember feeling that for some reason it wasn't important and that I should just treat him like a childhood friend. Rob-jii-chan did say that magic could come in many forms, so maybe Kaneki has some sort of mind magic?"

The more Jellal thought on it, the more logical it seemed. However, there was still something bugging him.

"If he really can do mind magic, why do you think he lied to us about it then and told us his magic made things explode?"

"Maybe he was scared of our reactions. I know that in some villages, magic is scorned and thought of as evil, so maybe he wasn't comfortable talking about it. And, to be honest, Mind magic is supposed to be really rare. He might not have proper control of his magic because no-one could teach him about it, so he just lets his powers out sometimes by accident. Maybe he thinks he might accidentally hurt someone if he experiments too much?"

Things still didn't quite add up to Jellal. If he was prone to accidental magic, wouldn't more of his memory have been erased? It seemed strangely specific to Jellal that the only part of his memory that was tampered with was his meeting with Kaneki. However, the azure haired boy decided making a fuss about it now wasn't going to make a difference. After he broke Kaneki out, he was going to get all of the answers he wanted out of him.

A clang of metal interrupted the hushed whispers of the cell, signifying the guards arrival. It was time to act.

They never saw it coming. One second the Guards were walking into the cell, preparing to yell at the miserable inhabitants about some shit that needed doing, and the next they were sprawled on the floor, knocked out by a chop to the back of the head by Milliana. Without a second wasted, all the prisoners in that particular cell flew out of their personal hell like water through a broken damn. Before the guards could properly react, the prison bars all around the group were cut like paper by Macbeth's distortion magic. The Prisoners streamed out, some of the older children among them showing various degrees of magical prowess.

The small huddle of guards that had been playing poker were trampled by the angry mob, one of them even being gored in the head by a ladies boot, killing him instantly. The slaves obviously didn't note this transgression, the feeling of freedom overwhelming their senses and clouding their thoughts.

A triumphant cry echoed throughout the tower, the signal to all the others that the revolution had begun.

The design of the of the tower was stupidly bad. Most of the cells had been cramped together, making communication with the other slaves pathetically easy. There were also a very small amount of guards, about one to every hundred prisoner. This led to a completely organised breakout being an easy feat. There was no real strategy involved in the plan, but it was hardly needed. The sheer overwhelming force of the prisoners easily batted aside the guards like flies. The terror tactics that the guards employed would only work on defenceless civilians, not hot-headed teenagers with access to magic.

The guards, so intensely enamoured with the concept of reviving Zeref, were blind to the common fact that magic manifested at the age of 13. Most of the slaves that had been taken in where children when they arrived, almost 90%, as they believed they would be easy labour. They failed to even grasp the concept that any of these children would grow up with access to magic. There had been incidents before, but Because of Yamori's terrifying presence, the kids were more-or-less kept in line.

Yamori was really the only thing keeping the place together, the only person who could stand up to a angry horde of slaves.

But his death had broken the fragile hold the guards had over the prisoners, and it was only a matter of time before all hell broke loose.

As the tight corridors and passages of the tower were flooded by fleeing prisoners all rushing towards the boats to escape, Erza was struck with indecision. She really wanted to leave, to be free of the shackles imposed upon her by this wretched place, but she also remembered that she needed to find Kaneki. She really had no clue what had happened to him, and the only way she would get that information was from the followers of the cult of Zeref. She held in a snarl just thinking about it. She wanted to be done with them once and for all, but it seemed she had to seek out the very same people that she had spent so much time trying to run from. Fate just seemed especially cruel today.

Erza noticed that most of the prisoners had left now, and she was standing alone, barefoot, on the stony ground. A cold wind blew past Erza, causing her to shudder involuntarily. The silence was thick enough to cut with a knife, and the sudden change was nauseating. There was never silence in the tower of heaven, the sound of machinery and moving gears prevalent all through the night. It all seemed so surreal to Erza, that she was finally leaving this place. A lone tear fell from her right eye. Her left eye never produced tears, and this strange phenomenon always bothered her. It was this thought that suddenly snapped Erza back to reality.

 _what am I doing here standing around while the others are waiting for me?_

She slowly started to walk forward, and suddenly the silence fell away and she was embraced with the sounds of the sea, and the victorious cries of children invaded her eardrums. She was crying even harder now, but she didn't know why.

 _Even though I'm finally leaving, why do I still feel so sad?_

She was jolted out of her thoughts by a familiar voice.

"Come on Erza nya! Stop standing around and gawking! We were all worried for you, ya know."

The, at first, loud and accusatory sound faded as the speech went one, becoming quieter and more reserved.

"Millianna..."

"Save it Erza. I don't know what your doing looking all depressed when we've finally escaped this hellhole. Cheer up a bit will you nya."

Erza suddenly realised the glum expression she was wearing, and gradually a happy smile appeared on her face.

"It's just a so hard to take in."

Millianna nodded at those words, her cat ears moving along with her head.

"You don't have to think about it anymore. From now on, we're free! Free to do whatever we want!"

This revelation set Erza's heart on fire. She was finally free to look for her Parents!

Millianna led Erza to a boat filled with Familiar faces. They were all here. Jellal had his usual infuriating smirk, Macbeth donned an impassive gaze, and some of the younger children looked up at her in delight. It was clear to see the expressions of elation on all of them, even macbeth's apathetic countenance did nothing to hide the waves of joy rolling off him.

Erza turned to look at Milliana, who was grinning even wider than some of the children.

Everyone was here.

As they set sail, Erza's eyes drooped due to the fatigue she was feeling, the steady rocking of the boat lulling her into a deep slumber

She was about to fall asleep, when all of a sudden a little voice startled her awake.

"Erza onee-sama, do you ever think I will be able to be as strong as you?"

Erza looked towards the source of the voice, and found a girl of around 9 or 10 standing in front of her. She had short, black hair and grey eyes, and had a white bow attached to the top of her head.

"What do you mean Kagura-chan?"

Kagura was a girl that Erza sympathised heavily for. She had lost her brother, Simon, at the hands of the guards and because of this incident she had become attached to Erza, seeking to be as strong as her to avenge her brothers death.

"Your the strongest person ever Onee-sama! Not even Jellal is as cool as you, and the way you use your swords is amazing! I only wish that I could fight alongside you, and not feel so useless….."

Erza could see the pain in the girls eyes. They had all lost someone in the tower of heaven, and Simon was one thing that was never coming back. Erza reached over and gave the little girl an awkward embrace. She wasn't very used to giving out physical affection, and the only reason she gave Kagura a hug was because it was what Rob-Jii-san always did to calm her down.

Wait...

Erza suddenly froze in shock, previously buried memories coming to the forefront of her mind.

"Onee-sama, what's wrong?"

Kagura had noticed that her precious Onee-sama had suddenly frozen up, and wondered what had happened. Did she say something wrong?

"Rob-jii-san, where is he? Why isn't he here? What happened to him? What's going on?!"

Erza's sudden proclamation caused the other members of the boat to widen their eyes, and a troubled expression marred Macbeth's face.

"This is going to sound really weird but... I don't remember. I remember he was with us when we broke out, but I don't remember anything about what happened in between that and getting on the boat. It's really strange, like a black hole in my memories."

Erza and Jellal paled in fear. This description sounded eerily similar to that of Jellals.

Maybe her theory about Kaneki's mind magic wasn't so far fetched after all.

Erza choked.

 _no... it can't be... how could I do that to him... he who gave so much just for us to be free..._

Erza's sobs had now turned into full blown wails, tears of anguish streaming down her face, her magic sputtering around her erratically.

The others faces were immediately concerned, and they rushed to confront Erza.

"Onee-sama, what's wrong?"

Kagura had never seen her precious Onee-sama like this before. She was always confident and beautiful, a shining example of all of Kagura's aspirations. Seeing her like this, in an almost broken state, didn't sit right with her. She looked so frail and weak, and she wanted to comfort her like Erza had done previously after Simon's death.

Through her sniffling and crying, Erza managed project a few words that created a sense of despair in all of the kids there.

"We forgot about Kaneki."

Standing atop a giant tower in the middle of a blue sea, two figures stood watching watching the waves crash below them.

It was night time now, and the glowing orb that hovered in the middle of the sky flashed to illuminate the two standing figures. One, with hair as orange as the dawn, and the other, whose head was adorned with silken locks as pale as the moon. They gazed silently upon the retreating smudges of brown that had left the tower a few hours ago, until they faded into inky black.

The white haired one turned to the orange haired one, his ruby red eye catching silvery purple.

"That old guy really was sour. I thought magic users were supposed to taste nice, but I guess old age gives off a more potent flavour than I thought. His skin was like leather, and his organs were so dry. Even his eyeballs tasted rancid, and they're usually the best bit!"

The white haired figure wildly gesticulated with his hands, trying convey to his companion just how badly his expectations had been ruined.

The orange haired one just gave an exasperated sigh and shook his head, as if he had gone through this ritual one too many times.

"You think your mind magic worked properly?", spoke the boy, still staring out to sea.

The white haired one walked forward to stand next to him, enjoying the view together.

"I still can't control it very well, so it will probably have worn out by now. Sending my magic through the wind is quite useful, but not as effective as the method I used on that kid Jellal. They're probably having a fit right now, wondering _how could we ever_ _ **ever**_ _forget our precious little Kaneki Ken!_

Kaneki's dialogue was ended with a fit of manic laughter, a single red tentacle bursting out of the boys back with the action.

"You really need to learn some control, Kaneki. If we are going to be travelling around while training, you need to be able to restrain yourself. We can't just have your tentacles bursting out in the middle of some random village!"

"Maaaaaa- you're no fun, Yahiko-san"

"How many times have I told you to just call me Yahiko? I swear you're doing it on purpose..."

"I don't know what you're talking about Yahiko?"

Kaneki had his hands stuffed into his pockets, and wore a lazy smile on his face. This was the most fun he'd had in years.

"See! You can do it!"

"You say something, Yahiko-san?"

"Fuck you."

Kaneki giggled in a not-so-sane way, and walked to the edge of the roof, balancing precariously over the edge.

"It's about time we left, isn't it?"

Yahiko noticed Kaneki's hair turning back to its usual ebony colour, his tentacle moving back into his body, and his eye bleeding back to a normal-looking black.

"Yeah"


	5. Chapter 5

Ghoulslayer 5

For Ultear, life had become a burden. Every little action caused her pain, even the simple act of coughing brought spatterings of blood out of her mouth. Once lustrous purple hair had turned dull and grimy, and her usually joyous face was completely lifeless.

As she lay curled up in her cell, Ultear could not help but feel forsaken by the world. If you asked Ultear a year ago what she thought about magic, her face would light up in joy as she recounted how "amazing" and "cool" it was. She could ramble on for days about how much she admired the guilds, and she would practically gush about the 10 wizard saints, about their legendary strength and unfaltering courage.

Ultear realised, now, how naive she had been. If asked now, Ultear would merely scoff.

She knew that the beloved magic council promoted what was happening to her. The purple haired girl had no illusions about how stained their hands were, about how they abused their power and status for the sake of "progress". The guilds were no better, merely turning a blind eye to the dark side of the council's operations. If guilds such as fairy tail actually had no idea what was going on in secluded testing areas such as the one she was in now, Ultear may still have hope that one day she would be saved.

However, it was not to be. The tower of heaven made sure of that.

One of the few "privileges" Ultear had was the gift of a few newspaper clippings from some of the more sympathetic scientists.

If she was honest with herself, Ultear had to admit that they were the only thing keeping her sanity together after almost a year in this disgusting facility. She had been trapped in here with almost no contact with the world outside the compound, due to the strict regulations the scientists set. Ultear had begun to forget what a natural breeze felt like, probably due to the unbearably sterile atmosphere of the whole place. Those newspaper clippings were the only link she had to connect with the real world, allowing her to feel at least somewhat involved in it's affairs by reading anything she could get her hands on.

Gossip panels, advertisement and headlines about the most recent exploits of some state-promoted light guild were devoured with fervour. Those passages lifted her from the crushing loneliness she felt, even if it was only brief.

And thus, due to Ultear's obsessive need for attaining knowledge about the goings on in Fiore, it was no surprise that she found out about the large, twisting tower in the sky. When she had first read about the tower of heaven, the purple haired girl had immediately dismissed it as fake. Even in this world of impossibilities, who would be stupid enough to build an entire fucking tower in the middle of the goddamn ocean, all for the sake of reviving some super powerful demon lord.

Yet, the notion remained.

The more she read about these "misguided children" who claimed to have been imprisoned in a "tower in the sea", the more scared she became. While the articles were clearly sceptical in nature, one could not deny that something must be going on, because the fact that random kids were getting washed up on the beach telling (more or less) the same story showed that there may be some truth in these seemingly fantastical tales.

The news reporters obviously didn't buy it, believing that their "oh-so infallible magic council would never ever let something so horrible go unchecked." And due to the lack of public stance taken by the wizard saints, the rumours were chalked up to some elaborate conspiracy theory.

But Ultear knew better.

She had experienced first-hand the cruelty of man, and the absurd claims that the children made suddenly seemed more rational. The guilds **had** to have known about what was going on, as a search party couldn't be that hard to form. The island, apparently, wasn't on uncharted territory either, so there should be nothing stopping an official search to find the place.

If they knew about it, and didn't do anything, then it made them just as guilty as the cultists in the tower. They definitely had the resources, but it would likely be expensive to organise the procedure. They were content to just sit and twiddle their thumbs, while god-knows how many kids suffered due to their complacency.

Ultear clenched her hands together, ignoring the pain that came with the action. A few silent tears fell from her eyes as she tried to rid herself from such depressing thoughts.

However, try as she might, her mind refused to listen, as she began to reminisce about the cause of all her pain.

-Flashback-

Ultear smiled as she ran around the village with a spring in her step. It was her 13th birthday, and her mother had brought her out shopping to celebrate.

It was nearing dusk, and the magically-lit lamps emitted a soft glow, illuminating the cobbled air. The sweet aroma of baking bread wafted through the air, giving the area an almost homely feel.

Her mother, Ur, laughed lightly as she lagged slightly behind her daughter. She always seemed so full of life and energy, and nothing seemed to be able to take away her innate happiness.

Ur shook herself from her musings as a bright and bubbly voice called out to her.

"Mum, look at this dress! It's soooo pretty."

Ur craned her neck to look into the shop her daughter had talked about, and there she saw something that caught the breath in her throat.

Among the rows of clothes hung a single dress that caught her eye. It was a milky white in colour, and seemed to be made of the finest silk. Satins and sequins hung from it in abundance, accentuating its colour and creating a slight reflective sheen.

Overall, it looked stunning.

"It's even my favourite colour mum! Please can you buy it for me? It is my birthday after all..."

Ur was hit full force with her daughters patented "puppy eyes", making her cave in almost instantly.

"I guess..."

"Yay! thanks so much."

The sheer happiness that radiated from Ultear's face brought a smile to almost everyone around her, her cries of joy spreading warmth as if it was an infectious disease.

It was at times like this, that Ur realised how blessed she was to have a child like her own.

After paying for the dress, Ultear practically jumped the whole way back home, seemingly vibrating with excitement. By the time they had reached the woods near their house, it was already dark, and due to the fact that they lived in a more rural part of town, there was nobody around apart from Ur and Ultear.

The pure silence that radiated from the trees was almost eerie.

Usually, at around this time of night, the nocturnal animals would be waking up and creating sound, whether it be a quick rustle of the bushes or the hoot of an owl.

Ur felt a chill move it's way up her spine. There was something not quite right about the whole situation, but Ultear didn't seem to notice, still whistling a happy tune.

Just as Ur was about to call out, a hand was placed on her mouth, muffling her cry.

"Don't worry miss, we'll take good care of your daughter."

A needle was slipped into Ur's arm before she could protest, causing her to slump to the ground unconscious, the dress still in her hand.

Ultear was completely unaware of all this, and ventured deeper into the woods, mistakenly believing that her mother was following her.

It was in a muddy ditch, face bruised and battered, did the kidnappers find the knocked-out form of Ultear, tear tracks staining her face

-Flashback end-

She was brought to the testing facility soon after that, and it was quite easy to convince her that she had been abandoned. She was obviously distressed and confused, so Ultear was told that her mother was in a great deal of financial debt and had sold out her daughter, and that if she escaped then her mother would stop receiving payment and starve to death. Although the story had a lot of holes in it, Ultear believed it anyway and it served as a way to tie her down to the facility.

By the time Ultear had matured enough to realise that the story was false, she realised her body had weakened to the point that it hurt her even to move. This was due to the fact that she was essentially kept as a test subject, a lab rat for hundreds of immoral and dark wizards.

Numerous drugs and medicines were tested on her from that day forward, ranging anywhere from healing salves to injections designed to make the victim feel as much pain as possible without them passing out.

The reason she wasn't _disposed of_ like most of the other children after a few tests was due to her magic, arc of time. With sleep, Ultear could restore her body to its previous healthy state, allowing her to be constantly experimented on day after day with minimal repercussions to her physical health, though mental health was another thing.

It was with these thoughts that Ultear went to sleep, the cold ground of her cell digging into her flesh.

Morning

Ultear woke up to the harsh sound of metal clanging against metal. She looked, eyes half closed, to the source of the disturbance.

"Oi brat! Get you're sorry ass to the testing room pronto, before the boss gets mad!"

The burly looking guard was wearing a blue button-up coat with faded black jeans. His face was quite plain, with no real distinguishing features. His oily black hair was pulled into a ponytail, and his mouth was twisted into a vicious snarl.

Ultear recognised this man as one of her many tormentors, who seemed to take sick pleasure in watching her scream in pain.

"Y...Yes. I'll be there."

Ultear knew better than to disobey a direct command from any of the guards. She had done so for the first few weeks she was here, but after being suitably _punished_ , Ultear knew never to argue again.

As the guard left, Ultear, still groggy after just waking up, managed to haul herself up from the floor and head to the small bathroom attached to her cell.

It was completely spartan, with only a tap, a small mirror and a hole in the floor that was meant to be a toilet. The room, like the rest of the facility, was completely whitewashed and sterile, without a speck of dirt or dust.

After taking care of her business, Ultear looked into the mirror, and winced at what she saw.

While it was true that sleeping cured her of most physical ailments, she still looked terrible. Grime plastered her face and arms, and she had dark rings around her eyes.

Her clothing was in tatters due to her last test being electric shock therapy, only barely covering her modesty. It was spattered with dry, flaking blood and smelt absolutely horrible.

Sighing, Ultear stepped away from the mirror, washed her face as well as she could, and left the cell.

She walked through brightly lit hallways that betrayed the mood of the facility, giving it a falsely serene image. Looking to the right, Ultear peered into some of the other cells that lined the walls of her prison, and saw countless other children locked inside cells identical to hers.

Some of them could be easily discerned as "new recruits" due to their wide-eyed expressions and continuous sobbing. Others of them, though, looked quite far gone and nearly ready to be scrapped. One boy that was particularly far gone, muttering things under his breath and rocking his body back and forth, snapped his head up to look at her as she passed by. His eyes were red and bloodshot, and his smile was filled with madness.

"Did you hear the news?"

The boy spoke in a sing song voice, which was very unnerving since the boy looked around 16.

Deciding to humour the boy, Ultear shook her head in a negative fashion.

"Ah, I see, I see. They must be scared of you then if they don't want you to know. That's good. Say, do you know about the tower of heaven?"

This question caught Ultear off guard, as it was something she was thinking about just the night before.

"Yeah I do. What of it though? There hasn't been any news about it in months."

The boy only smiled, and fished around behind his back for a few seconds. He pulled out what seemed to be the front page of a newspaper and gave it to Ultear, passing it between the bars of his cell.

"I stole this last month from one of the guard's pockets. It's old news in the real world, but for us its relatively new. Just look at the title and tell me what you think."

The boy gave Ultear a knowing smirk, bringing his hands back inside the cell as Ultear took the papers from his hands.

Ultear noticed that whenever she received some newspapers, they were always several months out of date, but she never dwelled on it much.

This piece seemed to be particularly old, the date being one 3 months prior. She looked at the title, and her eyes widened in shock.

 **MASS BREAKOUT FROM TOWER OF HEAVEN! THOUSANDS OF SLAVES ESCAPE FROM CHILD LABOURER RING ON SECLUDED ISLAND!**

Ultear was taken aback by this news. There was a breakout? When? Where? How? All these questions plagued Ultear's mind, but she decided to focus on other things for now.

The Guards had been becoming increasingly paranoid lately, their experiments getting rougher and seemingly more desperate. Ultear didn't know why at the time, but with this new information, she could safely say that they were scared of something similar happening in their facility as well.

Ultear gave the newspaper back to the boy with shaking hands, who only grinned at her before shuffling into the back of his room and out of sight, whistling an eerie tune. Ultear wanted to thank the boy, but thought better of it. It was best for her not to be late for her session, especially in these circumstances.

Ultear's walk resumed, and she eventually entered a testing chamber full of scientists. She was now wearing a white paper dress similar to the ones that patients wear in a hospital. She was immediately secured onto an operating table without any jeering or taunting,something else that had changed in the last 3 months.

The whirr of machinery sprang to life around her, as a large mechanical hand holding a syringe moved in front of her face. Ultear braced herself like she had done countless times before, a sudden crash emanated from somewhere inside the compound, and the electricity suddenly turned off, leaving the occupants of the testing room in the dark.

-PLAY PEIN THEME - GIREI-

Everything was silent for almost a minute. the sound of breathing the only thing that could be heard. Everyone seemed to be frozen in place, not daring to move a muscle for fear of incurring the wrath of whatever was out there.

Ultear strained her ears to try and pick up any sounds from behind the giant iron doors she had just walked through.

Nothing.

Just as she was about to give up, a familiar voice echoed throughout the room.

It was the boy she was just talking to.

"It's here! Salvation is here! Our god has come, to bring judgement to the wicked, to drag them down into the pits of hell! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA..."

The insane cackling shook Ultear to the core, her heart pounding in her chest. How could this have happened? Wasn't this place supposed to be impenetrable?

A large explosion blew up the metal doors, shattering the reinforced steel into millions of pieces, and covering the entrance with a cloud of smoke.

The scientists around her fled to the exits, while the guards grabbed their weapons and inched towards the doors slowly, leaving Ultear forgotten in her chair.

The intruders couldn't be seen due to the thick veil of dust covering them, causing the guards to call out.

"Show yourselves cowards! Come quietly and maybe we'll spare your lives..."

The challenge echoed out from the guard, and for a while there was no answer. The guards were about to move in, tired of waiting, but a smooth voice stopped them in their tracks.

"How...foolish."

Two figures stepped out of the smoke, making everyone pause.

Both of them seemed to be around Ultear's age, and both wore a long black cloak with red clouds stitched into them.

One of them had orange hair and numerous piercings on his face, almost giving him the image of a punk. However, his eyes completely changed this perception. They were purple, with concentric rings and an aura that practically creamed power.

It was overwhelming how much raw magic ability the boy seemed to possess, and Ultear wondered if this was the "god" that boy was talking about.

Next to him, another boy stood, only slightly shorter than his companion. He had coal black hair and an androgynous face, that sported an angelic smile. There was definitely something off about him though, and if you looked closely into his dark eyes you would see they were swimming in blood lust and hunger. He didn't seem to be emitting much power magic wise, but what magic he was leaking out was strained, as if it were being held back.

The guards didn't seem to notice the power emanating from the orange-haired one, and relaxed their postures.

"Oh, it's just a bunch of brats! I don't know what you're doing here, but you should both probably go back to your mummy and daddy. They might be worried, you know."

The guards cackling laughter rang out after that, but it didn't seem to faze the two boys. The orange-haired one was about to step forward, before his partner pulled him back.

"Let me handle this one Yahiko. It's been a while since I've eaten."

Before anyone could reply to that confusing statement, the boys hair suddenly bleached white and his right eye bled a shade of black and red.

"You don't stand a chance."

The boy cracked his fingers, before moving his hands up in a grandiose fashion, pooling magic into the palms of his hands. The guards attempted to charge, but it was proven to be suicidal a moment later.

"Mind make: Shuriken storm!"

A hail of see-through shuriken materialised in front of the boy, before he pushed his hand forward, sending them flying in all directions.

While some of them were dodged or blocked, over half of them hit their mark, sending a good chunk of the charging forces to the floor dead.

Their comrades deaths did not seem to affect the guards much though, as they charged with a renewed fervour.

"He's a long range caster, so if we get close he'll be dead meat!"

One of the guards was dangerously close now, and Ultear tried to scream through the gag to warn him. She didn't know who these people were, but an enemy of the guards were a friend of hers.

A warning was not needed, however.

Right before the guard was about to bring down his machete on the boy, a red tentacle shot out from his back and impaled the now-shocked man.

The once smiling face of the boy morphed into a hungry grin, and to everyone's shock and horror, the boy **bit** into the impaled man's arm.

"mmm, pretty good for a normal human. Needs a little more fat though..."

A sickening crunch emanated from the boys position as he continued to devour the man as if he was a light snack, tearing skin, flesh and bone.

If Ultear had any food in her stomach, she would have surely thrown it up at this point. What _was_ that boy? He clearly demonstrated two different types of magic, something that should be completely impossible. And what he did to that man... just sent shivers down her spine. He clearly wasn't sane, that was for certain.

Ultear snapped her head towards the sound of a piercing scream, where she witnessed 3 guards that had tried to attack the boy in a fit of blind rage be brutally dismembered by more tentacles coming out of the boys back.

As the last of his victims convulsed and lay dead, the boy turned to look at the remaining guards, his demonic-looking eye casting a terrifying visage, causing them to shake in fear.

One of those monstrous tentacles reached the boys mouth and picked his teeth clean, sending small chunks of meat splattering onto the floor.

"Y'know, I'd rather you _**didn't**_ watch me eat."

The guards started edging away slowly, before escaping in a full blown sprint through the emergency exit.

"He's a monster!"

"Demon!"

"That thing can't be human, no way..."

"Did you see the way he _ate_ Sachi? That kids a fucking psycho!"

The boy made no move to stop them or their comments, instead opting to lean on a railing with a lazy smile, as if he hadn't just murdered 19 men and cannibalized another.

"Want me to get rid of them?" The orange haired boy asked, his purple eyes glowing as he got ready to cast a spell.

"Nah, just leave 'em be Yahiko. We gotta make a name for ourselves, remember? If we just kill everyone we come across, no one will know who we are! Use your head a bit, man."

The boy now identified as Yahiko turned his gaze to Ultear, his stare sharp and apathetic

"What about her then, Kaneki?"

Kaneki made a small humming noise with his throat, before slowly making his way to the area that Ultear was strapped down to.

As she saw that smirking face, longer-than-normal canines bared in an unsettling smile and liquid red staining his white locks, Ultear wanted to fear him. She wanted to despise his savagery, his callous disregard for human life, his insane tendencies.

She tried to hate him, but her body didn't allow her. She was drawn to the boy somehow, his regal features accentuated by his pale skin, his monstrous eye suddenly seeming more like a gemstone trapped in a prison of jet.

As his face got closer, Ultear's eyes were drawn to his lips, painted ruby red with blood. His scent was intoxicating, a light metallic scent mixed with pine and cedar, something she hadn't smelt in what seemed like forever.

Just a little closer, and then she could...

Ultear was broken from her thoughts by a sharp flick to her forehead. An atomic blush covered her cheeks as she tried to rid herself of the decidedly scandalous thoughts she had just been having. He was still a cannibal, no matter how pretty his eyes looked.

Kaneki's head was tilted to the side in childlike confusion as he watched the girl redouble her efforts to try and cover her cheeks with her bound hands, albeit failing miserably.

"Why aren't you scared?"

Kaneki's voice stopped the purple haired attempts to escape, making her give Kaneki a wide-eyed look.

"What do you mean?"

Kaneki's stare persisted, leaving Ultear feeling oddly exposed.

"Don't tell me you didn't see what I just did. Any other person would be a screaming, crying mess, but what's different about you? Fully grown men have knelt to me and begged for mercy, and I could see every emotion that flashed through their eyes as I finished them off. Pain. Fear. Regret. Sadness. You have none of them. What makes you so different? Do you simply not care that I ate a man in front of you, or is it something else, some emotion I have yet to discover?"

Ultear tried to tell tell him that he was wrong, that he was was evil and she loathed him.

The words died in her throat.

When she looked into her eyes, she saw the same ones she had seen in the mirror this morning. Dull, lifeless, fed up with the world.

Yet, there was a spark in them. A tiny ember of hope in this godforsaken world, that there might be salvation for the broken.

How could she hate a person just like her?

The other boy seemed to notice this too, as the corners of his lips lifted into the first genuine smile he had had in a long time.

"I see. So it's like that, huh? Although you're weak now, you have potential. Train. Become strong. And once you have achieved power, come and seek us out. We'll be waiting, Ultear-san."

Kaneki turned to leave his studded companion going with him.

"Who are you?"

The girls cry caused Kaneki to smirk, although Ultear couldn't see it.

"Call us... the Akatsuki."

As they left Ultear stares forlornly at their retreating figures.

She would prove herself to them, no matter the cost.

A small spark manifested in Ultear's eyes, changing her destiny forever.


	6. Chapter 6

-4 years later-

A young woman found herself lost in the crowds of Magnolia. She had golden blonde hair that reached down to the middle of her back, and a voluptuous body that seemed common of most female mages in this day and age.

Her face was fair, and she wore a blue tank top and skinny jeans that clung a _bit_ too tightly to her behind.

Not that she seemed to notice.

Her name was Lucy Heartfilia, the runaway heiress of the Heartfilia empire.

She had a beaming grin plastered to her face, and she absentmindedly fingered the celestial keys attached to her hip as she wondered the town, taking in the sights through wide eyes.

It was the middle of the day, and as such Magnolia was bustling with activity. Men and women alike streamed in and out of shops, buying anything from frivolous souvenirs to the latest lacrima-powered televisions. Lucy loved places like these, hives of movement, sound and smell.

She had spent most of her life in a large but empty mansion, and felt lonely often because of it. She spent many-a-day silently contemplating the world from inside her bedroom, or writing novels and other pieces of literature.

It had become something of a hobby after her mother had died, and Lucy often found solace from her grief by writing letters to the deceased Layla Heartfilia.

However, none were more affected by the death of Lucy's mother than Jude Heartfilia.

He morphed from a happy and caring man into a bitter shell of his former self. The man grew cold and distant with everyone in the mansion, and spent most of his time locked up in his study. He neglected his fatherly duties towards Lucy, simply due to the fact that she looked to much like his own late wife for Jude to bear, causing him to spend as little time as possible with his daughter.

It was because of this, that Lucy found herself making her way through the city streets, far away from her father's influence.

The decision to run away had not been easy, but Lucy knew that it was worth it. She could finally attain her dream now, to join fairy tail.

"Salamander-Sama!"

"He's so cute!"

"Can I have your autograph Salamander-kun?"

Lucy looked in the direction if the fangirlish screams, and saw a man of about 30 with slicked back hair. He was mildly attractive, and Lucy was just about to dismiss him as some sort of fashion model before a though entered her head.

 _Salamander….isn't that a fairy tail mage?_

Lucy had done a **lot** of research into fairy tail before coming to magnolia, and Salamander was definitely one of the most famous mages there.

She got closer and closer to the man, something about him enrapturing Lucy with an aura of warmth. Soon, the fuzzy feeling enveloped her, and she could see was her and Salamander-sama. Fairy tail didn't matter. Her father didn't matter. Salamander-sama was just-

Lucy's thoughts were broken when the man of her admirations suddenly crashed face first into the floor, the force behind his fall causing cracks to appear in the stone.

"Y'know, I'm pretty sure that ring is illegal. I better take you to the rune knights for questioning or something. Yeah, Erza would probably get mad if I didn't…"

Lucy looked at the man that had unknowingly saved her purity, and took in the pink hair and broad smile of the **real** salamander with awe.

She smiled, and proceeded to tail the man, with the intention of thanking him as much as possible.

What _thanking_ meant to lucy, will remain to be seen.

* * *

Natsu Dragneel had just finished dumping the unconscious body of the criminal at the rune knight station, and was about to head back to the guild hall, when he was hugged (read:rugby tackled) by a strange blonde-haired woman.

"Thank you sooo much! I don't know what I would have done without you! You were so cool, even cooler than the rumours said you were! I never thought I would meet you in person."

Lucy's fangirlish rantings caused Natsu to sigh in annoyance. Wherever he went, trouble seemed to follow.

Deciding to put an end to her squealing, Natsu stepped in.

"Please take a breath Ms…."

Natsu's prompt seemed to do the trick, as Lucy instantly stopped her ramblings. A blush of embarrassment crept up to her cheeks, giving her the appearance of a ripe tomato.

"L-Lucy, Mr Salamander! I mean - uhh…"

Narsu, sensed an oncoming headache, and it's source would most definitely be this strange woman.

"Natsu, Natsu Dragneel."

Lucy visibly brightened up, as if he had somehow just made her day by stating his name, even though it was common knowledge by this point.

Fangirls were weird.

"So, Natsu-san," Replied Lucy, sidling up to him in what she thought was a provocative manner, unzipping her tank top slightly to reveal some of her generous cleavage. "Is there any way you might be able to let me join fairy tail?"

Let it be said that seduction was never one of Lucy's strong points, so her rather obvious actions were justified in this instance.

Natsu looked at Lucy strangely, not understanding what Lucy was trying to gain from her actions. Maybe she was a bit hot?

"Yeah, sure. I don't see why not. You are a mage, right?"

Lucy was temporarily saddened by the fact that her _seduction_ techniques had failed, but it quickly gave way to an unbridled joy that raced through her body at his revelation. Her dream of joining fairy tail was complete!

She skipped along the cobbled path happily, a visible spring in her step.

"You do know you're going the wrong way, right?" Said Happy, a random flying blue cat that seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"Oops, sorry!"

Shouted Lucy, seemingly ignoring the contradiction of nature right in front of her.

Natsu groaned as a large sweatdrop formed on the back of his head.

"Great, another wacko joins the guild…"

The blue-furred feline seemed to snort at this statement.

"Yeah. Says the guy that has a fetish for getting beaten up. After all the times you've been pummelled by Gildarts, I'm sure you should have learnt that you're no match for him. Maybe your a masochist or something, that would explain the time when you-"

Happy's statement was interrupted by an outraged cry of indignation, as the fire dragon slayer pounced at the cat.

"I. Am. Not. A. **MASOCHIST!"**

A burst of flame flew from the boy's mouth, but it was easily dodged by Happy.

The cat smirked and flew after Lucy, all the while pulling faces at Natsu.

"Come back here and fight me like a man!"

"But I'm a cat, not a man dummy."

This interaction was viewed from afar by a cloaked individual, who allowed a small smirk to reach his face.

Anyone looking at him wouldn't be able to tell though, as the persons face was covered in a bone-white mask that concealed all but a single eye. The mask had an eerie grin painted onto it, large teeth and a wide smile only helped add to its terrifying image. (A/N this is Noro's mask from tokyo ghoul, but with a single eyehole carved into it, a bit like tobi's mask from naruto)

"Fairy tail, huh? I wonder what a person like _him_ is doing here?"

* * *

Lucy was in awe at the guild hall. Even though chairs were being thrown around, bottles were flying about and profanities were constantly in the air, the whole guild had a warm and homely atmosphere.

Natsu had run off into the brawl almost instantly, and was currently trying to punch what seemed to be a male stripper.

It was interesting to see just how accurate the rumours of fairy tail were, the fact that one of their infamous "tavern brawls" was happening right in front of her only cemented her point.

A loud crash emanated from the middle of the hall, as what could only be described as an old midget stomped his feet, creating shockwaves that knocked everyone else in the guild over.

"Stop this at once! Can you numbskulls not see that we have new recruits?"

The guilt went silent after that, and all heads turned to look at Lucy.

A sudden nervousness overcame her. All of their faces looked so serious….

"Well? Go on, introduce yourself!"

"H-hi, my names Lucy.! I -urr- really want to be a member of this guild… I-if you don't mind."

A series of nods went around the tables of the guild hall, almost as if the members were communicating by code.

"So, what magic do you use?"

Lucy had been prepared for this question, but the redhead that had said it was staring at her so intensely that Lucy faltered slightly.

"Urr - celestial spirit magic! I - uhh- can summon spirits with my keys from the spirit realm, and I can order them to fight for me."

Lucy then proceeded to show off her keys, the other mages murmuring in approval.

A gothic-looking girl with white hair stood up after that, and pointed to a place right next to Lucy's shoulder.

"What about you, masky? Got anything to say?"

Lucy, confused, looked to her side to where the girl was pointing, only to see a tall man wearing a creepy white mask. He donned a black cloak, with standard combat clothes underneath, and had an air of seriousness around him.

 _When the fuck did_ _ **he**_ _get here?_

"Mmm? Noro is Noro's name. Please be good to me!"

The man's intimidating presence evaporated instantly, giving way to an overly-slouched posture and childlike voice.

The white-haired girl was just as confused as Lucy, and sat down quietly, all the while giving the masked man a weird look.

The redhead from before stood up again, and levelled a glare at "Noro"

She wore full-body armour that only left her head uncovered, giving her the appearance of a knight from a fairy tale.

Now that Lucy thought about it, it did seem pretty ironic.

"Remove that mask right now! If you are not willing to trust us with your face how will we trust you? For all we know, you could be a secret agent sent here to gather information about fairy tail!"

There were a few shouts of agreement from within the guild hall, but none of them sounded particularly threatening.

"Nuuuu! Noro likes his mask! Noro won't give it in, never."

Erza growled, and before anyone could stop her she charged forward, reequipping a sword into her hand.

She swung with practised ease, and she wore a focused but angry expression. The sword was not intended to maim the man, of course, but to scare him into submission. She always found people were more co-operative when put at swordpoint.

However, this never happened, as she suddenly tripped on a stone that had appeared out of nowhere. She had attempted to regain her balance, but in doing so the timing of her swing was thrown off, causing her to plunge her sword straight into the mans torso.

The whole guild stared wide-eyed at the scene, uncomprehending that such a simple mistake could end in such a grisly death.

They waited for the blood, the screams of agony, the dying wails of a man betrayed that they knew would eventually come, but after about a minute of shielding their eyes they began to realise something was up.

Erza head jerked up at the sound of giggling, trying to pinpoint its source. How could someone be so insensitive that-

Her eyes fell on the man she thought she had slayed, and she noticed his almost uncaring demeanour. He was still slouched over, his hands behind his head as if it was too much of a bother to actually utilise his neck.

"Are you guys going to keep staring at Noro all day? I didn't do anything wrong, I promise!"

The guild fell into uproar.

"He's not dead?"

"What just happened?"

"Was that all just an act?"

These shouts and more echoed around the guild hall, before the master cupped his hands in front of his mouth, amplifying his voice to superhuman levels.

" **Will you brats just SHUT UP for a second!"**

There was a sudden silence, one only disturbed by the whistling of the new arrival.

After noticing that all eyes were on him he looked around, as if searching for something, before pulling out the sword that had been stuck in his chest.

"That was giving Noro a bit of a tummy ache. Boo, Noro hates tummy aches!"

A few, more rational members of the guild sighed at this, silently mourning the fact that they had allowed another nut job into the guild.

The master strode up to Noro, giving him a calculating look.

"Tell me this brat, **WHY** do you wear that mask. If it is something personal I understand, but it would be better if you gave us a solid reason."

The guild looked scandalised that the master had completely ignored Erza's almost fatal misdemeanour, but any budding outcries were quickly stopped by a piercing glare from the Master.

"Well, Noro was burnt really bad when some meanies set fire to my village, so my face got all scarred and ugly! It's pretty yucky, so I keep it covered with my super-cool mask! Does that answer your question, mr midget?"

Makarov's eyebrow twitched at what he sensed was going to be his new name, before he let his face droop in sadness. Those so young, already seeing the darkness of humanity sickened him to the core. The master turned his head to stare at Erza, his gaze containing such disappointment that Erza instictually shrinked away.

If one were to look at Erza right now, you would see her trying her best not to burst into tears. Not only had she nearly killed a new recruit, but she had also insulted a part of him that he must have felt insecure about. If she had managed to take his mask off and show his face to the world, he would probably hate her for the rest of her life.

Just like Kaneki.

Erza shook her head from those thoughts. There was no point in thinking about the past now.

"Welcome to the guild then, Noro."

* * *

The master's voice broke Erza from her musings. It was not due to its loudness, however, but it's sombre tone. She had never heard the master be so upset about something before, and the atmosphere he created seemed to affect the entire guild.

Throughout this whole thing, Lucy could only stare in disbelief. She thought the day that she joined the guild was going to be great and full of excitement, but the harsh reality had now dawned upon her. Somehow, something had gone terribly wrong, and now her mood was ruined.

She wanted to be angry at the masked man for stealing all the limelight, but she quelled those selfish thoughts instantly. He may act like a child, but no-one deserved to have their face mutilated beyond repair, especially someone who seemed to be around her age.

As if her thoughts had somehow summoned him, he appeared out of nowhere in front of her, his head cocked in a childlike fashion.

"You're new here too right? We can be best buddies then! My name's Noro, what's yours?"

Lucy was put off by the man, but she responded out of common decency.

"It's Lucy, Noro-san. Nice to meet you."

With an excited giggle and exaggerated handshake, Noro bounced away, greeting all of the other members of the guild with equal vigour.

He may be weird, but nobody said he didn't have energy.

After a few hours of observing Noro from afar, Erza could safely say that Noro had joined the guild in mind and soul.

After getting the fairy tail stamp on his mask(something that Mira surprisingly didn't argue with), he joked and chatted with all of the members of fairy tail, getting to know each and every one. Erza had hidden herself away, of course, to avoid being spotted and further humiliated, but she knew she could not escape forever. Sooner or later she would have to confront him, and hope he forgives her.

Erza strode out of her hiding place, Walking with purpose towards where Noro was sitting with Natsu and Gray. They seemed to be discussing Noro's magic, which was a topic that Erza found herself suddenly interested in, so she slowed her pace a bit to hear as much of the conversation as possible.

"- and it was so cool! You said you can warp away parts of your body right?"

Noro nodded, though his head moved with so much vigour that it seemed to snap his neck.

"That's amazing! It's gotta have some kind of cool name for sure. Maybe like "Super death ray of oblivion" or "Ultimate warp cannon fissure shot". Or, maybe even-"

Noro interrupted Natsu, his voice taking an unexpected edge.

"It's called kamui."

The steel in Noro's voice was in stark contrast with his previous behavior, making it seem as if his jovial nature was all just a facade.

But as quickly is it came, Noro's voice morphed back into a childish squeak, making Erza question if her ears were working properly.

"It's cool, right?"

Natsu seemed exceedingly nervous, Noro's stark change in personality seemed to have affected him more than she thought.

"Y-yeah, it's cool."

Noro gave an "eye smile" (don't ask me how this is possible) and hopped out his chair, skipping away just before Erza reached their table.

Gray looked at Natsu, and the relieved expression he wore after Noro had left only further enticed his curiosity.

"Why were you so scared flame-brain? You frightened of a stupid old mask?"

Instead of retorting angrily in true Natsu style, the dragonslayer instead stayed silent, and gave gray a worried look.

"I don't know if you saw, but after he told me the name of his magic his eyes changed."

Noticing Gray's confused look, Natsu carried on.

"I mean, one of the things Igneel taught me before leaving was how to read people. It may not look like it, but I can tell quite easily when someone is feeling down, or when they are trying to hide something from me. What most people don't know, is that the eyes can tell you a lot about a person. When i first saw him, he seemed happy and carefree, just as he portrayed himself to the rest of us. However, just now his eyes changed into something completely different. It's a bit hard to explain, but it was almost as if staring into the eyes of a predator. It suddenly seemed to me that I had turned into a mouse, and a lion was towering over me, baring its fangs. I only saw it for a second, but it was still there, I'm sure of it. Be careful around him, ok?"

Seeing the normally goofy Natsu so shaken up made Gray feel increasingly nervous.

Maybe the feeling he had been getting from him this whole time wasn't unfounded after all.


	7. Chapter 7

GHOULSLAYER

Noro had blended into the guild well. It had only been a few weeks after his arrival, but it was easy to see the familiarity with which the guild members regarded him. Although some were still a bit sceptical, the majority of the guild had warmed up to the masked man, especially after he had completed a 10,000 lien mission. **(A.N. not sure about the conversion rate for lien, but i think 10,000 is a decent amount)**

An interesting observation that could be made of Noro was that he seemed to shy away from the bar fights that so frequently plagued fairy tail. While this in itself wasn't any cause for concern, the strange thing was the intensity with which Noro regarded these events. You wouldn't normally be able to catch it, but during every fight Noro would sit on the sidelines and stare at the ensuing carnage with a rabid gleam in his eye. It seemed as if he wanted to join in with the brawls, yet something seemed to hold him back.

As the other members were usually too engrossed in the fighting, the only person who seemed to notice this anomaly was the master. However, he elected to say nothing about it, figuring it to be some remnant of his traumatic past come back to haunt him.

He couldn't have been more wrong.

If maybe the master had read deeper into his behaviour, and decided to check on the man a little more actively, Makarov may have noticed the way he seemed to almost _disappear_ during certain times of the day, only to come back a few hours later with odd stains on his clothes. Maybe he would have caught onto the fact that Noro had never been seen to consume anything besides coffee in the guild hall, and take more note of the fact that he had vomited violently when Natsu Dragneel had placed a small amount of chicken in his drink. Maybe he would have prevented the future events that would occur because of the monster he had unknowingly let into his guild.

Maybe.

But, in the words of Makarov's greatest failure - "The master was always a senile old fool. He would never see the bad in people even if it was presented right in front of his face."

* * *

After a few weeks of waiting, Noro's target had finally arrived. It hadn't been a grand affair, the doors had been swung open one day and _lo and behold,_ there he was. He was a man of about 18-19, with long blond hair that was kept in a ponytail. He had a large bang that completely obscured his left eye, and he sported a fairly pissed off look. Noro didn't know if his face was permanently set in that scowl, but he would definitely save the question for later.

He looked fun to tease.

The man walked with purpose, ignoring the hushed whispers that surrounded his entrance, and sat himself at a table in the corner of the guild. He kicked his feet up and closed his eyes, seemingly tuning out the rest of the world around him.

Noro acted uninterested, casually sipping his coffee, but in reality he was listening closely to the conversation going on next to him.

"I don't even know why that shit even bothers coming to the guild anymore. Pretty sure he could up and leave one day and no-one would notice."

"Yeah, he doesn't even take any missions! He just mopes around looking for pity, and scares off any newcomers to the guild with that glare of his. It's honestly sickening, maybe if he actually trained he would be able to contribute. I don't know what the master even sees in him!"

The two talking with such vehemence were Macao and Wakaba. From Noro's earlier observations, they both seemed to be of the easygoing sort, and because of the fact they were older than most of the other members members they were seen as parental figures to some of the guild.

So, it was quite surprising to hear the sheer _venom_ in their tones.

Guess his target had potential after all.

Noro got out of his chair suddenly, startling Natsu who was sitting right next to him.

"W-where are you going?"

Noro gave Natsu an eye smile, and without further response skipped towards the corner of the guild where the blond sat.

The man in question didn't seem to notice his incoming approach, the ambient noise of the guild covering up the sound of his footsteps. It wasn't until Noro's mask was pushed up against the blond's nose that he opened his eyes, staring at Noro in confusion.

This confusion quickly died away, however, and an angry scowl formed on his face.

"Piss off."

Noro simply clapped giddily at the man's words, at sat himself on the opposite side of the table to the blond, completely ignoring his warning.

"Hi there mr Broody! Noro's name is Noro, what's yours?"

The man looked at Noro as if he had grown a second head. He stayed quiet for a few seconds, trying to figure out exactly what the person in front of him wanted, before giving his answer.

"If I tell you my name, Will you leave me alone?"

Noro nodded his head rapidly.

The blonde sighed, before finally giving in to Noro's request.

"The name's Deidara, now fuck off."

Deidara stared at the masked man for about 5 minutes after his declaration, but to his dismay the man had not moved an inch.

"Well?"

The only response Deidara got was a childish giggle, which only made Deidara more irate.

"Noro lied! Sorry Deida-chan…"

At this point Deidara was practically emitting steam from his ears. Sure, he knew nearly everybody in the guild didn't like him, but he thought at least it would take a new member more than 5 seconds to join in with his daily torment.

The blonde's palms started glowing slightly, causing him to immediately clamp down on his anger. The light was miniscule, hardly noticeable in the daytime, but Deidara could _feel_ the malicious intent oozing out of his palms.

The blonde looked back at the masked man, narrowing his eyes at him as Noro drummed his fingers against the table, whistling a happy tune.

Deidara let out an internal sigh of relief

 _Well, at least he seems too stupid to notice anything_

It was at this point that someone decided to walk up to Deidara's table, a place that was practically forbidden territory to the rest of the guild.

The flowing crimson hair and paladin armour that were representative of _The Titania_ were present in this woman, as well as her signature glare.

"Deidara! This is the last time you get away with this insolent behaviour of yours. If you continue to torment members of the guild, then I will be forced to take justice into my own hands!"

Deidara wanted to retort, but Noro beat him to it, placing a finger on the blondes lips before he could open his mouth.

"It's fine Er-chan! Noro and Deida-chan were just playing around, no need to worry!"

Erza took a moment to register his words, and was about to call Noro out on the obvious lie, but she paused as she recalled what Noro had called her.

"Did you just call me…. Er-chan?"

Erza's eyes were wide, and she sported an almost hopeful look.

Noro cocked his head to the side in a quizzical manner.

"Yep! Noro called you Er-chan! Sorry if it made you sad, Noro will make it up to you, I promise."

Erza looked down at her feet with crestfallen expression, something that was rare to see on the _Titania_. She chided herself mentally, knowing that there was no way Noro had any relation to the boy she had abandoned all those years ago.

 _His bones are probably still in that tower_

Erza looked back at Noro, her tough facade starting to crack as she re-lived painful old memories. If you looked hard enough, you would probably be able to see the glistening of her eyes, and the way her lip seemed to tremble as she talked.

"S-sorry, it's nothing. You just sounded like someone I used to know…."

He might have sounded like Kaneki, but there was no way it could actually be him. If her suspicions were true, Kaneki would have probably exacted his revenge on her somehow, or at least shown some type of aversion to her.

Yet Noro had been nothing but nice not only to her, but to the rest of the guild as well. It would be shameful to pin accusations on one so clearly devoted to the guild's well-being. Erza left the table with a heavy heart, completely forgetting the reason she had gone there in the first place.

Underneath Noro's mask, past the layers of ceramic and paint, a wide and giddy smile appeared on the man's face.

Er-chan was always fun to tease

* * *

Deidara looked at Erza in bewilderment, not being used to this side of the normally stoic knight. Her voice had wavered and cracked, making her seem almost vulnerable, a term one would never usually associate with Erza.

Deidara's day was just getting weirder and weirder.

He looked back at his masked companion, once again scrutinising the man. Now that he thought about it, there was something _off_ about him. Deidara could hardly feel it, but underneath all the positive energy Noro was exuding, there rested something much darker and malicious. It was well hidden, and to those who had no prior experience with dark magic there would be absolutely nothing wrong with his magical signature . However, as Deidara had spent most of his life after joining the guild repressing his own magic, he had committed the feeling to memory.

One defining feature that all mages had was the ability to sense the magic (or ethernano) in other beings. Magic was tied in with ones emotions and personality, so magic users could usually tell "good" from "evil" from the feeling of their magic. Magic had a very vibrant feel to it when you first started using it, as it was the embodiment of all the emotions swirling around inside that person's head. However, as the acolytes learned discipline, their magic would eventually condense into a single emotion of trait that defined them. Whether it be happiness, innocence or greed, their magic gave off a certain vibe that was easily observed between mages.

One might think that defining traits such as greed and sloth would mean the user wielded dark magic, but in reality that was not the case. It had been realised that the feeling of magic was quite general in what it represented. Greed may be a lust for money in some cases, but in others it could be the desire to get stronger. For example, one who _overindulged_ in training wouldn't be scorned but rather praised, even if the action in itself is a greedy one. Thus, it was never good to judge a person by the feel of their magic, as it wasn't a reliable way of identification.

Dark magic, on the other hand, had a very distinct feeling. Those that practised these "forbidden" magics could more often than not _manipulate_ the ethernano inside of them, making their magic undetectable unless they were using it. As soon as the magic is released, however, you would be able to feel the myriad of emotions coming from the caster. It was unfettered and unrestrained, chaotic even, and thus easy to trace. However, with this side effect came reward as well. Dark magic was, more often than not, much more versatile than other magics. It was unhindered by a single emotion, and thus allowed to run freely, into more fluid forms and shapes.

Deidara had once read a book about how all original mages used dark magic, but had dismissed it to be false. The magic council had drawn very strict lines with the usage of dark magic, and anyone caught using it would usually end up behind bars for the rest of their life. So it made little sense that the magic council, people who glorified the past and origin of magic as a wondrous and amazing phenomenon, would miss out this detail.

Deidara was woken from his musings quite suddenly, as the object of his thoughts once again invaded his personal space.

"Oi Oi! Deida-chan! Stop spacing out on Noro!"

The outraged cry from the masked man caused Deidara grit his teeth in annoyance. This _person_ wasn't who he claimed to be, it seemed. Even if Deidara didn't have all that much love for the guild, he didn't desire it's destruction, far from it. After all the time he had spent here, it had unintentionally become his home, even if it was uninviting.

A small, traitorous part of his heart carried on hoping that maybe, one day, he would be accepted into this guild.

And maybe exposing this _fake_ for who he really was would be the first step into a brighter future.

Noro looked over at Deidara, and gave him an eye-smile that looked all too innocent to be real. He cocked his head to the side, as if mocking him, daring him to speak the words that would ultimately out him for good.

Deidara let out a cruel laugh, and looked Noro straight into his lone eye.

"Game over, freak."

Noro just kept on smiling.


End file.
